Reinhard Gladbacher, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Imperial Crownlands of Hulstria:

In light of the collapse of the National Arbeiderkongress government in the Kingdom of Kazulia, and following preliminary talks with the new administration, we invite representatives of the Grand Coalition government in Kazulia to join the ruling Military Council of Hulstria for a conference in the capital of the Imperial Crownlands, Karlstadt.

The primary subject on the table will be the ongoing occupation of the state of Hulstria and the northern half of the state of Budenlar - an area commonly referred to in Kazulia as Statvinger. This uneasy situation has been in effect since a ceasefire in 4265, which brought to an end the conflict known as the Hulstro-Kazulian War.

We ask all representatives attending this conference to make themselves known before we get down to business. (OOC:This conference is only for representatives from either the government coalition in Kazulia or the government of Hulstria, any other person who wishes to participate is asked, out of courtesy, to approach relevant parties for permission. Thanks).

I extend my thanks to Herr Gladbacher for the invitation to this conference, and for the hospitality of his Government and this nation during this visit.

I am Siri Hægeland, leader of the..erm..Progressive Alliance in Kazulmark, and newly appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs for the precise duty of representing Kazulmark in securing a viable and long lasting peace for our region. I do look forward to the work ahead of us, I am one who thrives on diplomacy and detail, so I really do hope we have a productive conference and we can get some meaningful work done.

The most important thing for all of us right now, of course, is in calming the situation so that diplomacy can find space to work. As such, I am able to confirm to you, Herr Gladbacher, that your proposal of a demilitarised zone is one that the Kazulmark government thinks carries value, and we are willing to oversee the immediate implementation of such a proposal in order that this conference may take place under an air of a true stepping down of tension. If you are willing to ensure that the Hulstrian troops pull back from the border, we will indeed pull our troops back to the true Kazulmark border. In the time being, our proposal would be to allow WC forces to oversee the necessary patrolling of the area.

Reinhard Gladbacher, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Imperial Crownlands of Hulstria:

We thank Foreign Affairs Minister Hægeland for her constructive approach to these talks. We can confirm that if you are willing to pull your troops back to the true pre-war Kazulmark border immediately we are also able to confirm that our troops currently positioned along the Heinrich Line will also de-mobilise immediately and we will ask our Sekowan allies to withdraw their forces to their own country.

We are also prepared, as discussed previously, to draw up a 10 mile demilitarised zone in the north of Budenlar and Hulstria that will be patrolled and administered by WC troops and officials for an indefinite period whilst these talks continue and beyond. I will speak to the Istalian delegation at the Congress to see if they can facilitate this.

Once this action has taken place. We can get down to the nitty gritty of setting out a formal long lasting peace deal. I am hoping this withdrawal can take place by the end of September 4274. Please let me know if this is possible from you point of view.

“I venture to suggest that patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.”

Perfect, then if indeed both troops are pulled back by the end of the month, we can begin moving on to the more important details of this peace deal. On our end, the end of September is a realistic goal, and I shall instruct the Government to begin such a pull out as soon as is possible.

This simple action proves quite clearly to both our people that neither Government is interested in protracted war or conflict, in more bloodshed. What I hope we have done today is prove that peace is an option and it is the preferred one. This may well be the easiest thing we have managed to do, in fact, for there is a lot of detail to be worked out in the next months to ensure a peace deal that will last and satisfies all sides of the equation. I look forward to working with you, Herr Gladbacher, on the issue.

Reinhard Gladbacher, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Imperial Crownlands of Hulstria:

Very well. Our troops will begin immediately standing down and our security forces will work with the civil administration set up in Budenlar and Hulstria to facilitate a smooth transition and help with the Kazulian withdrawal. On October 1, if troops on both sides have been withdrawn, as specified, we will look at an immediate prisoner exchange and complete the process of dismantling Operation Human Shield and the other defensive protocols we had in place.

Afterwards, we can then get down to business of ensuring a lasting peace between our nations and the signing of an official treaty to formalise such details.

It is clear that we have achieved more with the new administration in Kazulia in a few weeks than we did with the old government in many years, I want the international community to take note of where the blockage to peace lay and who was the destabilising force.

“I venture to suggest that patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.”

Kazulian troops have now withdrawn to the pre-war border while Hulstrian troops have de-mobilised and Sekowan armed forces returned home.With the occupation over, the states of Budenlar and Hulstria are now being administered by the Hulstrian government once again. A prisoner exchange has now taken place and our government is ending its defensive protocol known as Human Shield.

Further talks will now take place between the two governments to ensure a lasting peace.

“I venture to suggest that patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.”

As Kazulmark has certainly made clear previously, we remain uncomfortable about the transfer of citizens between Kazulmark and Hulstria which would cause them to lose status and rights. We urge once again that The Crownlands expedite their reforms of their citizen classification system and bear in mind the fact that those of mixed hulstro-showans and Kuninito make up more than half of your nation's population. In the meantime, however, I would suggest that in the aftermath of this peace treaty our nations may allow for easy movement of citizens across our borders if they so wish. We recognise the position of the Hulstrian minority in our own territory, and it has been a demand of your own that we allow a movement of that minority across the borders if they wish. We are more than happy to allow those that are currently classified as Class C citizens in the previously occupied territories to cross into Kazulmark and become Kazulian if they so wish it, if the process of reform is not sped up to an appropriate rate.

Reinhard Gladbacher, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Imperial Crownlands of Hulstria:

Foreign Minister Hægeland,

It is our intention to fully review the Citizen Classification laws in our country. Whilst we believe there is ongoing merit in the system we also understand that some elements of the international community do not share this view. This review will take place after the next election.

We welcome overtures to allow those citizens of Hulstrian ethnicity who live in southern Kazulia the rights of freedom to be closer to their kin in the Imperial Crownlands. We are both aware that your previous government restricted this and that this was one of the factors that led to war. From our point of view no citizen of any class has been prevented from leaving Hulstria to start a new life in another country, if they so wish. Obviously we had to close the borders during the conflict but there is nothing in place now that should stop Class A, B or C citizens living or working in your country. We hope for a reciprocation from your government.

Talking of your last government, after regaining control of the northern territories of our country we were shocked to see how much irreparable damage had been caused under the occupation. Cultural and historical monuments and statues ripped down, memorials to the Hulstrian military council removed. Their talk of infrastructure programmes was much exaggerated and was a smokescreen for resource exploitation, as far as we can tell.

That is why we are keen to set out a proper treaty for peace with your current government, which will be long lasting and benefit us both.

“I venture to suggest that patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.”

Mr Gladbacher, I don't wish you to mistake my openness to diplomacy and peace as merely accepting your nation's story of events that led us to this situation. While I disagree wholeheartedly with the occupation set up by the previous government, I do not merely forget the fact that the aggressors in the war that led to it were yourselves. In fact, I object entirely to your attempt to justify your actions in invading our territory with the perceived injustice forced upon ethnic Hulstrians in our southern border.

Quite frankly, I have been open and diplomatic throughout these conferences, for it is the best interests of both our nations that we can talk as adults at a table rather than down the barrel of each others' guns. However, I am not here to merely accept all that you throw my way. Your Citizen Classification system is wrong, full stop, no further discussion. It is an absolute affront to basic human rights and it is at its core racist. That is a position held by ourselves and by the world as a whole. We do intend to ensure that the citizens of the territory previously referred to as Statvinger are not merely downgraded, and I want that to make as clear as crystal to yourself and your government. We will watch the upcoming review with key interest, and if that review does not result in enough progress, we will seek advice form the world community as to what the next step should be.

My point, Mr Gladbacher, is this. Do not overreach your hand here. We have done well in these negotiations, we have acted as diplomats and have found common ground, but do not mistake my or my nation's attempt at diplomacy as an acceptance of your domestic policy, of the justification for your aggression, or for any acceptance of guilt on our part. We merely seek a lasting peace, but that will not mean giving up on our morals. Any treaty between us will not stop us in continuing to campaign and argue against any actions that you or indeed any nation take which is against the basic human rights that all men and women are guaranteed.

Reinhard Gladbacher, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Imperial Crownlands of Hulstria:

Foreign Minister Hægeland,

Thank you for your candour. I merely wish to point out that while our nation made mistakes leading to the recent conflict - which we openly admit, your previous government certainly wasn't whiter than white. It played a major role in, firstly, prolonging the military action and then in instigating a protracted illegal occupation of northern Hulstria, for reasons that we believe were nothing to do with citizens' rights, but instead were to do with resource extraction in this mineral rich area of our country.

But please let us move on positively: you will note that these talks have been held up due to the early election that was called in our country following the collapse of two parties. However, we will now endeavour to review the Citizenship Classification system with the opposition Republican party, discuss the right and wrongs of it and take into account your comments. This will take some time but we hope to make it a referendum issue at the next election, due in 4282. However, we must make it clear that this is an issue for my country and my country alone. Any attempts to influence the democratic decision, either overtly or insidiously, will not be tolerated.

In terms of reparations, a matter we have discussed in he past, we are considering the sum owed and will come back to you with what we believe is the appropriate figure as soon as possible.

Finally, I would not recommend taking any issue to the world community. The World Congress is an ineffectual, archaic system that flatters to deceive. On several occasions we urged the Security Council to intervene in the conflict, firstly to prevent it and then to help broker peace. On all occasions the countries on the top table either failed to make a breakthrough or, in many cases, could not even be bothered to take any interest.

It is a sad inditement on an organisation that should be the ultimate force in creating stability that it has simply become an arena for verbal slanging matches and more recently its main focus has been to pass on condolences about the death of a political leader.

“I venture to suggest that patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.”